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| Wednesday, 31 December 2003 |
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Politics | |
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| Act in a calm and peaceful manner - Anura Senior Advisor to the President and Gampaha District MP, Anura Bandaranaike in a statement issued yesterday requested all sections of the community to act in a calm and peaceful manner without allowing petty emotions to gain the upper hand and assist the President in building a peaceful and prosperous Sri Lanka devoid of racial, religious, caste or any other petty differences. Mr. Bandaranaike said, 'Sri Lanka has inherited a proud and unbroken history dating back to 2500 years because our forefathers had rendered a noble service to the nation devoid of any religious or racial differences or hatred and greed. They had always acted with a sense of patriotism, co-existence, justice and fairplay and as a result our nation has inherited a great Buddhist civilisation which has even baffled the whole world. Since of late thera have been signs of a conspiracy being hatched to drive this country with such a proud record into an abyss by creating religious tension and clashes. All communities and religious groups should dedicate themselves to defeat this conspiracy and create a society where people belonging to all religions could co-exist with each other respecting other beliefs while protecting the Buddhist philosophy and civilisation. Mr. Bandaranaike said, "At a time when the whole country is grieving the demise of Ven. Gangodawila Soma Thera, we Buddhist should lead our lives according to our religion and resolve to act peacefully without resorting to violence. Buddhists will never be drawn towards violence or harassment of others because such action is anathema to Buddhism. The flames of racism and separatism have severely weakened Sri Lanka. Instead of trying to overcome that tragedy if we try to contribute towards creating a society with religious strife it will only please various forces which are waiting on the wings to gobble up our country. Our political parties, political and religious leaders as well as the general public should never leave any room for such an eventuality. Buddhists, Hindus, Christians and Muslims have peacefully co-existed in this country for the past several centuries. All past governments including the Sinhala Buddhist kings had honoured the freedom of other religions and taken steps to protect and safeguard their rights. The incumbent President will never leave room for any harassment or injustice towards any racial or religious group in this country. Despite losing one eye she has dedicated her whole life towards building a peaceful and prosperous Sri Lanka devoid of racial, religious, caste or other petty differences. It is the bounden duty of us all to render support and strength towards her noble endeavour. It will help create a positive environment and build a law abiding society. We therefore request all sections of the community to act in a calm and peaceful manner without giving into petty emotions. For this it is opportune to recall Buddha's teachings and live accordingly. |
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